7. The Bargain Store

It’s new to me because, not to sound like a broken record, but because Tash and I share a lot of music. We just hang out together and I wanted a Dolly Parton song because I think she’s been such a huge influence. Some people know that she wrote ‘I Will Always Love You’ the big Whitney Houston song, maybe everyone knows, but I have come across a few people who don’t realise Dolly Parton’s reach. I remember hearing ‘Here You Come Again’ when I was a teenager, and when Dolly first came out on the scene, you know, because of the visuals. She was such a visual presence that I don’t know if, at the time, everybody understood the singer-songwriter that they were dealing with. It was country pop, it was a huge hit, but the artist, who we’ve gotten to know as the great legendary Dolly Parton, was kinda hidden. People were distracted by the celebrity and the visuals because she was so stunningly beautiful, you know? A strong visual presence is sometimes a mark against you. Or you weren’t, you know, an artist’s artist? But she’s proven to be one of the great singer-songwriters of our time. I didn’t know which track to choose, and this is something I have just discovered in the last year – in lockdown.